The Rusty Wallace Racing Experience Tragedy
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- Опубликовано: 12 ноя 2023
- Stephen Cox, a 30 year old from Illinois, went to Kentucky Speedway in September of 2014 to try his hand at the Rusty Wallace Racing Experience. However, on his 3rd flying lap, the steering wheel detached, sending the fan hard into the wall. Unfortunately, Stephen suffered a basilar skull fracture, among other severe injuries, and would pass away just one week later.
Case File: juryverdicts.net/RacingExperie...
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As a high school graduation gift, I got to do a ride along here at Kentucky with the Rusty Wallace experience…. This ended up being just the day before this incident took place. I often think about this young man, and I can only hope that his family is doing okay.
I did the Mario Andretti experience which travels with the Richard petty one at Atlanta Motor Speedway last fall. I knew going in there’s a very rare chance that if I crashed I could die. But I will say. Before you went out 5 people pulled on the steering wheel checked belts and all the safety equipment along with making you check it with them witnessing. So props in that regard. But it was the most awesome thing I’ve ever done. Totally worth it
Did you feel comfortable going full throttle?
@@HypePerformanceGroup you can’t go “full throttle “ because you’ll hit the chip and ride it. And there’s no tack in the open wheel cars so you had to go by feel which was a challenge for me. But I did the 45 minutes of track time option and hit 160 and loved it
I did Mario Exp and even though I thought I would die at any second I kept it to the floor. There is no safe way for a human to go 150mph.
@@fladave99 the one I was in if you kept it to the floor it would hit the 8k limiter and slow you down. So I had to try to find the sweet spot but I would slowly let the petal off and didn’t realize it till the spotter reminded me. The new banking at Atlanta at 160 is insane. All I can see is the turn when you’re in the turns. The Gs were awesome it was totally worth it and I don’t think one accident should deter anyone
@@fladave99 but yes there’s no safe way to drive fast lol
Kentucky has evidently been a difficult track from the get-go. To lose a steering wheel!! God bless this family and all crew members.
The track is supposedly a very bumpy track, and difficult to drive on. That may be one of the reasons why there is no longer racing going on there.
@@ku4uvnah it's because of viewership and bad traffic and attendance if there were those three only I bet u theyll be racing there
@@ku4uvthe track isn’t bumpy. Especially after the reworking and repaving in 2018. The drivers hated the track after the repave.
I'm saying at one time, it was considered a bumpy track. I don't know how it is now. It may be as smooth as a baby's bottom now, if it has been repaved. Doesn't really matter now anyway, there's no NASCAR or INDYCAR races at the track anymore, and probably never will be. What a waste of a great track!
@@dannermanner5506
I wish they would at least bring back an Indycar race to Kentucky. Yeah the traffic was a mess, but they added more exits off of the highway to help alleviate that, so that shouldn't be an issue now. The issue is NASCAR sucks, and has for some time now, so nobody watches or attends the races anymore!@@MoterSport33
I ran a total of about 1200 miles in racing school cars from 1997 thru 2011 at Rockingham, Atlanta, Bristol, Charlotte, Darlington, and Michigan. All schools were either the Buck Baker School or FastTrack (Andy Hillenburg's school). Both were EXCELLENT and had a lot of emphasis on safety. I was pretty fast as I got familiar with the cars and was often on the rev limiter. Also did a bit of vintage driving at Sonoma but with little experience on road courses, I was slow there. I'm "old" now (77), so am only active in I-Racing which is quite immersive and very challenging and enjoyable. Steering wheel retention was always checked vigorously by both the instructors and myself.
There used to be a video from the Dale Jarrett version of this, from Talladega. They would let the cars hit 180. In the video, the left rear tire blows out. The car immediately spins thought the trioval and hits the inside wall near the start finish line. The driver and instructor were fine, but what a ride.
Jarrett lost his right rear wheel at Talladega but there's a video on UTube where like this young man ,Dale Jrs. steering wheel came loose on him at Talladega !!!!
I did the Dale Jarrett Driving experience about 10 years ago. You are correct, my top speed on my 10 laps was 179.5 mph. It was an absolute blast and a memory that I hold dear. My instructor told me about a few tire blow outs.
were they saving money and getting tires only capable of barely 180 or something? Feel like tire blowouts are super rare for anything asphalt oval related
@@Landon21racingI think it's more likely that they would've reused tires until they popped.
I did a Richard Petty experience at Kentucky Speedway many years ago and had a great time. The car was much easier to drive than I expected and I got up to 162mph, almost on the limiter.
lame
As a former KYS FAST member this story always sat heavy on my mind. I joined a year after this took place and i couldn't tell you how often we drilled on scenarios like this. Morning meetings always involved a scenario or two, lunch break had us working with the tools in the boneyard often, and even on non event weeks we'd finish our upkeep work and review last weeks race to discuss how we'd approach different wrecks. It actually took me by surprise how calm I was the first time i had to go on track for a wreck as a result. The racing on track may not have been stellar, but the men and women behind Fire and Safety absolutely were.
A what member? I tried googling and it gave me a Suicide Prevention Hotline...
For anyone being bombarded by suicide hotline information after googling "kys fast," it's Kentucky speedway fire & safety team.
(Somewhat obvious after getting the context at the end of the comment, but I went searching well before that LoL)
I used to work for another driving experience This is a tragedy and it comes down to training and complacency. Prayers
I did 15 laps at RIR in a Rusty Experience car the week before Halloween. They did a good job of scaring you into buying insurance and going on a ride with a driver first, but from there safety was not the most important matter. The fire suit was likely not going to protect you from a fire, they didn't provide gloves and the pants didn't extend to my feet (one of the women I was with was wearing flats), the helmet looked like it should have been put straight in the trash, the HANS device looked too small, and there was nothing to protect my face from fire. But the biggest problem I had was that when I mentioned I didn't know how to release the harness I was told it was fine and when I protested when I was asked if I was aware of how to get out of the car my concern was ignored and I was sent out on the track. Much of the staff working there was under 18 years old and seemed largely clueless about everything. Of course, after all this you can say I knew what I was getting into and I could have refused to go out - and you're right.
Would I go again? Absolutely.
thats still a major lawsuit in the waiting
Sounds like most amusement park rides
Dude Sounds ambulance chaser employed experience was good or he would have audio video
The insurance is a crash insurance clause.
I've heard about a multitude of issues from the RWR company. I did the Richard Petty/NASCAR experience at old Atlanta for 30 minutes in 2019. Felt very safe. My calculations show a lap speed of near 140mph. I felt slowed down but the whole system was safe. Car was an old gen 4, snug in the seat, belts tight, good fire suit, and big open face helmet. On track, besides being super tight, had great stability. Had a spotter too.
Dale Jr wheel came off before in a race. Crazy how fast he got his back on
good memory it was at talladega and he ripped off the skin on his hands trying to steer before he got it reattached
and it was during the race
Luckily under caution
I remember doing this ride along experience at Chicagoland speedway 10 years ago.
Simply tragic what happened to Steven. Note: Actor Jason Priestley almost died at Kentucky Speedway in 2002 in a open wheel car.
That was MIS I thought
Open wheel racing has a long, sad history of driver deaths. Getting in one is literally handing your life over to it.
@@michaelwerner1478 No, it wasn't Michigan, it was indeed Kentucky.
I did this experience in October at Michigan. The true safety concerns seemed the least of their worries. They give you speakers to put in the helmets to hear their "spotters" but you have no ability to talk back. When I did mine it was raining in turns one and 2 there but not anywhere else, had no way to know wether to keep going or put it in the wall possibly. It ended well and was great fun but I probably won't use their company again.
I raced that track with Richard Petty's' Driving Experience. I ran 20 laps taking a break after 10 laps. This intermission was to critique the drivers and encourage them to get the most out of their experience by letting er' eat. I remember getting belted in the car and my assistant grabbing the wheel and shaking it, making sure it was locked tight. These driving schools are only as safe as the people who maintain the cars and crews. I never believed that my life was in jeopardy the entire 20 laps. All I remember was how fast I was running and how hard it was to get to 154 MPH. And from that time on, I never looked at the last driver to qualify in a NASCAR race slow when he was running 191.mph. Those drivers are special. So sorry for Mr. Coxs' accident. But things happen i the world of motorsports.
Rip Steven. I did my Rusty Wallace Experience at Kentucky Speedway and it seemed to be done at the upmost professionalism. I would do it again in a heartbeat it's a chance we take for high speed experience.
Wow.... all he wanted was to have fun on his 30th birthday, and it sadly ended up being his last. Condolences to his family..... and I certainly hope that his family got justice, more importantly.....
I did the Rusty Wallace experience at Iowa Speedway back in 2018. Super fun. I could feel all 4 ties sliding around the corners and the steep banking was keeping my from sliding up the track. I was pinned hard against the right side of my seat. It was thrilling!
Steering wheel put on backwards? I've done a few driving experiences and drive a little mini sprinting. This is mind boggling that not even the driver realized it was backwards.
Wouldn’t even be possible
I have never heard of this Rusty Wallace Racing Experience before this.
A lot of the big race tracks have racing experiences with different names,.wallace, petty, etc.
Ive done this and extreme experience. Both were a lot of fun but id highly recommend extreme over this. The nascar you get to drive is a very retired car im guessing here but i assume the tires on them are used tires that were taken off cars and are near the end of their usable life. They didnt show us under the hood or anything but im fairly certain the engines are just stock 4.8 or 5.3's. They make 300hp or less whatever they are. Dont get me wrong, it was a blast to drive but it wouldnt compare to driving an actual nascar. The extreme experience cars are legit super cars, the program they run is much more professional and they really let you get on them. My instructor yelled at me for letting off the gas. Haha im not saying you shouldn't do this one. It really was fun. I just think the other one is a better experience. I drove the Lamborghini. Ive been in plenty of high horsepower vehicles but driving something like that is way different than getting behind the wheel of a built mustang or muscle car.
Rusty's brother, Kenny, has the same racing experience, but on dirt.
As per an article from "Influential Moments in Racing:
The Cox estate officially brought a lawsuit before the courts on June 11, 2015, demanding a jury trial. Unfortunately, what happened afterwards is not documented.
They probably settled out of court with a non-disclosure agreement. Which is unfortunate, as it's a disservice to the public to not know just how expensive these mistakes can be for the companies involved. If they know it's a $10 million mistake (for example) to have this happen, they'll be more careful.
I did rwr experience last year at erie speedway in Pennsylvania. It was fun but I didnt feel safe. They had me in a car with the seat so low that i was peaking over the dash to see, and im 5’10”. Not to mention the seat belt harness was too big and I was loose in the seat. My steering wheel literally had at least a half an inch of play in all directions at the quick release, and they knew all of this too and just ignored it. It was too late to get my money back so i did it. 50 laps, not tight to the seat, with a loose steering wheel and almost no visibility. If i could go back, i would have just walked away.. not worth it. They just want your money.
I call bullshit. I didn't work for the RWR experience, but I did work with the Petty Experience. They have multiple cushion.options in the bottom of the seat for height, they have different cars with different size seats in them, and no quick release has a 1/2" of play in it, ever! The steering might, but the quick release, no way! The steering is slow on purpose on a speedway in order to hold the line and not make rash moves at speed and risk spinning out. A little slop is understandable and is just in the steering box, if this story is true at all, and I'm not saying it is.
Also, they want you satisfied, they want you comfortable, they want you safe, and they want you to have the time of your life so you will tell your friends and they will come do the experience themselves. They will accommodate you in the car, and of course they won't refund your money, but they would have given you a voucher to come back on a different date, if it was really true they did not have another car available. Although that's hard to believe, because we had a dozen, always had back ups, and could always send for more if one's broke down on us for some reason. We even stayed late and ran extra sessions to fit everyone in before. Whatever it takes!
I feel like it's really hit or miss. I did it at Indianapolis Raceway Park, on the short track the Xfinity series and trucks run/ran on. The car was obviously older, with an old Yates Havoline paint scheme, but was in good shape overall. There wasn't excessive play and the belts were snug. They also had several cars and sorted people by height and weight to fit the cars.
@@johnlafever3162 it was in a late model. No bullshit.
It wasnt slop in the wheel, the quick release where it goes over the spline wasnt tight, i could pivot the wheel any direction. They didnt offer me a seat insert, and my harness wasnt snug to my body. On god. Like just puting it out there for anyone considering doing it. Look out for these kinds of things
@@daletoldmetodoit3983 ok, I'm willing to believe you somehow had a bad experience, but I still have a problem with the overall experience.
Now it's "they didn't offer an insert!" How about speaking up, like "Hey, I can't friggin see, this is unsafe and on top of that I'm not enjoying myself.
I still don't understand the slop in the quick release splines. They fit right into each other as an almost exact fit of hardened steel. They could wear a little over thousands of releases, but not 1/2"! I'm not sure what's happening there.
I'd write RWR experience and list off exactly what you list here. Give them the chance to address it or rectify it.
I did the Rusty Wallace racing experience , 2 different years at a local short track (Sandusky Ohio) and loved it..I did a ride along and then drove myself and they made sure everything was up to power , before the car was started , when I did it…
Truly sad and heartbreaking. I have done that same program At several different tracks and speeds , with no issues. Nor have I seen any wrecks or issues. But anything could and can happen at anytime. I love racing and trust that organization, and am willing to take the risk. Sorry for your loss, at least it was something he always wanted to do.
My brother and I did the RWRE at Charlotte about 8 years ago. I was about 60 years old and my brother was 68. We both did the ride alongs as well as hitting the track solo. His car only had 4th gear (which you can imagine was difficult leaving the pits and my car had everything except 4th gear. My spotter (who you cannot respond to) was yealling either "go low" (due to pro's being on the track at the same time), or "go-go" meaning to go faster. I was almost panicking as my glasses were fogging up under the helmet and could bearly see. I couldn't get the car to go over about 60 mph w/o 4th gear. I finally headed back to the pits before my laps were up. To top it off, the in-car video that I paid for did not record which was dissapointing. In all, we had a very memorial and exciting time but if I do it again, I will just do the ride-along and sit back and enjoy the ride with a pro.
Im not suprised sadly. When i drove a late model at CNS, both right side tires were corded when i got the car, but it was the last day of the event so they let it slide. Such a sad story. Also a great reminder to tug on the wheel a few times to make sure its fully seated.
I did this experience last year, kinda crazy we are both from illinois. I tried to check out a wrecked car when I was there but they yelled at me.
I was set to take part in one of their events at our local dirt track, a track I attended weekly. I can tell you that the cars they brought were a bunch a clapped out, unmaintained junk. One guy crashed hard into the turn one wall when a front shock mount simply failed going into the turn. so many of the cars broke that day that I never got to drive. It took several weeks, but i finally got a full refund from them. Never again, their stuff is too dangerous for even a local short track.
As someone who just turned 30 and day dreams about running one of the NASCAR experience cars whether it’s Rusty’s or Richard petty or whoever’s this is just a scary story man. Can’t imagine. Heart goes out to his dad. I can’t imagine how he felt being there.
Blaming others for your adrenaline junkie pursuits is LAME!
@@kidwave1 obvious troll is obvious
How do you put a steering wheel on backwards?
I have done the rusty Wallace experience many times in there top cars and have always felt safe . Accidents happen and this is horrible!
I did the Nascar Experience at Atlanta Motor Speedway back in 2012. I got car #17, Matt Kenseth's and hit the limiter of 150 mph several times. The "diploma" they gave me said my best lap was 149.79. They had a 40 minute drivers meeting and this guy who resembled Sgt. Carter came in, welcomed us to Atlanta's Nascar Experience and then said, "you can be killed today". That got everyone's attention. But nobody walked out. It truly was an Experience that I'll never forget. I'd love to do it again.
I have a friend in Utah, who signed up for the Las Vegas edition of a driving experience. The dude said it was one of the most thrown together, unprofessional thing he has ever signed up for. His rear tires got a little out of shape heading into turn 1 after lap 3 of his 50 laps, the spotter told him to park it immediately, they took him out of the car and told him he wouldn’t be getting refunded because he had “lost control” of his car.
If yall go to these, be careful.
I did the Rusty Wallace Racing Experience at Phoenix Intl Raceway, PIR, and it was done very professionally I thought, in fact for someone who has tens of thousands of hours in Iracing, I was wanting more than just the 10 laps with a spotter telling you when you can pass, etc, so my only complaint was wanting to be able to pass more than possible. But, it was done professionally and I never felt unsafe in any way. Everyone had to use a Hans device.
Sorry to hear this. I am praying for the family.
The Rusty Wallace experience is much worse. Their cars are in bad shape and they'll don't have a problem throwing you in a car that you are too big for.
I did that one in Sandusky ohio last year. Dont get me wrong, it was a good time but yeah... those cars are pretty well clapped. Im guessing theyre "maintained" with used parts that aren't suitable for racing anymore. Im not sure what engines are in them but theyre just stock small blocks making 300hp at MOST. Id imagine theyre just stock 4.8 or 5.3's to keep them from using too much fuel and run reliably all day at the events. Im not a professional driver but im guessing the tires they use on them are used too. The car didnt hook well at all.
Got any first hand pics and proof?
I agree, I did this once with their company and their cars are absolutely in terrible shape and didn't look very safe.
I have done the Rusty Wallace Racing Experience three times, twice at Iowa Speedway in Newton, IA and once at Chicago Land Speedway. The last time was at Chicago Land in 2014. I remember this clearly being the time frame as I needed a knee replacement and was using a cane at the time but this did not disqualify me from driving that day. I went through the safety briefing and remember that the emphasized many times that there would be no left foot breaking allowed. Not a problem HOWEVER, as I got into the car, I noticed that the break pedal was very high but what I did not notice was that the car was setup for left foot braking ie, the brake pedal was mounted on the left side of the steering column. I didn't even think about it at the time UNTIL it came time to come down off the track and I needed the breaks. I struggled to lift my leg to the high mounted break pedal but couldn't get my foot on the brake. My foot kept hitting something which I later found out was the steering column. I final decided to see if I could brake with my left foot and my foot went right to the brake pedal and I was able to stop the car all the time with the "spotter" screaming in my ear. Lesson learned is if they tell you not to brake with your left foot, be prepared to do just that if the car is setup to brake with your left foot because that may be the only way to actually stop the car. I've often thought what would have happened if something would have happened out of the track and I would have had to brake suddenly? Needless to say, I gave them a piece of my mind when I got out of the car and have never been back.
How was the steering wheel put on backwards 😱??? This should be a cut and dry lawsuit.
Exactly!
My moms boss got a driving experience at charlotte in may. He had a blast. I think he got the 3 lap package or whatever it was. I wanna do a ride along at dega or something. Id love to drive one but dont have my license
It happened in a cup race. Steve Park driving for DEI
RIP to him, must've been super scary
I doing Rusty Wallace driving experience in March at Darlington. I have done the Richard petty driving experience at Charlotte. It was great. I felt safe and the equipment looked good and was checked. I pull on my wheel several times. Sad about this man's accident.
GOD BLESS THIS PRECIOUS YOUNG MAN'S FAMILY LEFT BEHIND FAR TOO SOON!! NO EXCUSES NASCAR AND RUSTY WALLACE RACING EXPERIENCE !!!! MAY GOD GIVE EACH OF THE FAMILY PEACE THAT SURPASSES ALL UNDERSTANDING AND MAY GOD MEET YOUR EVERY NEED 🙏🏻 KNOW THAT YOU ARE ALWAYS LIFTED UP IN PRAYER NOW AND ALWAYS AND YOU ARE LOVED 🙏🏻🙏🏻AMEN 🙏🏻💞🤗💞🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻
I worked at a NASCAR style driving school many years ago when it was a real racing school. We never let a student go on the racetrack without checking the steering wheel to make sure it was on correct. Prayers to his family
I have done the Rusty one several times and never had any issues or problems. Class organizers. Very good time and training.
I did this years ago at Clermont in Indy. It was a blast!
A friend of mine who drives for Rusty Wallace mainly at Texas Motor Speedway told me a little bit of different story about this. Per my friend, who was driving at these Experiiences before this incident and still does, this guy took it upon himself to try to adjust the steering wheel by pulling the pin, taking it off and then putting it back on, causing the wreck. My friend wasn't there but was part of the discussion since he was a long time experienced driver. It's a sad story but he may have brought it upon himself.
My friend drove me around TMS for a few laps and it was quite exhilarating. Nothing like it.
Tony Davis was killed in a similar driving experience crash at Talladega 2004. A video on him would be my suggestion
In 2004, I drove around Michigan at a top speed of 150mph in an open face helmet with no Hanz device with Richard Petty driving experience. Had my steering wheel came off, I may have not survived.
Michigan nearly killed Ernie Irvan.
That’s a very dangerous track!
I've seen the aftermath of a Rusty Wallace Experience crash at Citrus County Speedway in Florida. I had a long drive to get there so as soon as I parked I headed towards the nearest bathroom, then I heard a loud bang but didn't pay attention because I had to pee badly. I go around the corner of the bathroom building and I notice a small crowd and what looked like a wrecked racecar but dismiss it, as soon as I step inside I'm hit with intense sunlight and i notice there is a giant hole on the bathroom wall where there used to be a toilet and stall. I had to go bad so thankfully the urinals were intact but it was surreal peeing with this giant hole to my right. So this is a tiny bullring short track and the pits and facilities are outside the track, once a car is finished making laps they exit outside the track and make a sharp right-hand turn by the bathroom building but the driver being an amateur possibly made an error and went straight slamming into the concrete blocks bathroom wall. It could have also been a car issue because the cars were in terrible shape, as was mentioned on this video, or a combination of both. Somehow no one was injured but imagine if someone had been in that bathroom stall...
Afterwards the driver was talking to the employees saying that it was not his fault and that the car caused it and the employees were adamant that it was not the car's fault. He did not get the extra insurance offered so the employees are telling him he is fully liable for the damage and at this point he is freaking out. Felt terrible for the guy.
Then moments later its my turn to make laps and needless to say that experience scared me so I took it easier on my laps, didnt push it as I otherwise would have, and after I was finished and exited the track I went super slow around that bathroom building. I have to say that the company seems very sloppy and careless. The staff is iffy, there is hardly any training beforehand and the cars are in absolutely terrible shape. The car I drove felt old and beat up, and didnt look particularly safe but for some reason I still got in it. Thankfully nothing happened to me or anyone else that day.
When I was a kid, we , as a family, raced go-carts. My mom was killed when her steering came off the steering post. A freak accident that could have been prevented had proper guidelines been in place.
Wait. The lawsuit states that they installed the steering wheel BACKWARDS??! In a reverse dish position. No wonder it didn't lock. This shows how insanely incompetent the staff was. All the other items in the suit show gross negligence. I feel so badly for Stephen and his family. I did one of these at Texas Motor Speedway on their tri oval and it was fast. My only concern was whether the tires were safe, but after watching this I will be asking a lot more questions before I do anything like that again.
@@gopherdudette It being backwards is why it wouldn't latch and is why it came off while driving the car. The driver had never been in a cup car, and in his excitement could easily have not noticed "it looked wrong/strange", plus he wouldn't have had any reason to question the people who installed it for him. Just like he didn't check the tire pressures or oil level or whether the roll cage was constructed correctly. The lawsuit documents has photos and details backing up their claim it was installed backwards.
I don't know I have trouble believing a NASCAR fan or anyone wouldn't notice a steering wheel being put on backwards
I have no Ida how it could be put.on back.wards you would have to look up how it hooks up I had a sting wheel come off but when you put it.on sould all ways pull on wheel to make.sure hooked
Pretty simple. Go look at the court documents. They have presented clear evidence showing the wheel was on backwards.
Call total bs on this...steering wheels with quick release latch can only go on one way. From the dirt track clean to nascar cup level. No way to pass the steering shaft thru the steering wheel and mounting flange.
I did a RWRE ride along at New Hampshire about 7 years ago… RIP
Just to be clear, these cars are equipped with removable steering wheels which MUST be removed and re-attached in order to have enough room for the driver to enter and exit the car. The steering wheel is mounted on a splined hub which fits over a splined steering shaft. This hub incorporates a positive detent collar which locks the steering wheel in place on the shaft. Once the driver enters the car and is seated and strapped in, they must install the steering wheel on the steering shaft and push forward it on until the lock collar engages with an audible and tactile click. Failure to lock the steering wheel in place will allow it to come loose while the car is in motion. This type of failure is normally considered among racers to be driver error. However, with the proliferation of "Walter Mitty" class drivers this item should be double checked by event personnel before the car is allowed to leave pit road. The bottom line is that this was not a mechanical failure, it was a human failure to insure the mechanical steering wheel hub lock was properly engaged. That said, we have hosted the Rusty Wallace Driving Experience at our track and as a track employee I have to say that I have been less than impressed with the RWDE staff.
I actually drove the Richard Petty experience at KY Speedway. I found it to be very professionally run and had a great time.
I did the NASCAR Racing Experience in May of 2014 at Kentucky Speedway. I was barely 16 and rode with a professional driver, but since I was racing pro karts at the time, I already had my own helmet, gloves, racing shoes and HANS device. They provided a one layer firesuit and we went about 160 for three laps I think. I’ve driven my street car at Atlanta Motor Speedway and Nashville Superspeedway. Tragedies happen when people stop putting safety at the forefront of their minds and go through the motions. But I would do it all again.
I was able to drive one of these in the Petty Experience at the then named Lowe's Motor Speedway in 2004. I was surprised on how bad the cockpit of the retired stock car was with wires hanging down all over the place, but other than that it was fairly good.I was able to achieve a top speed of 154 MPH with a lap average of 138 MPH. I ran 40 laps altogether. Overall I had a pretty good time and it was worth spending the day on Pitt road standing in winner's circle and just being at Charlotte motor Speedway, or Lows motor Speedway.
Even if the wheel had came off,the injuries that he would have had wouldve been minimal.With a HANS device and properly tightened belts thers no way he would have struck the steering colum and dash area! They did a terrible job of making sure he was strapped in and safe! You should feel slightly uncomfortable with a hans device and 5 point belts sinched down!
NICE WORK !!!!!
They are advertising the Rusty Wallace Experience at Kentucky Speedway last summer.
Also should have mentioned that there is another video out there from the Rusty experience. That one is from IRP. The steering wheel came off, and the guy hit the inside wall.
RIP Steven
I just bought this for my friend for Christmas….. came to look it up on RUclips. Hope my buddy will be ok lol
The car doing that backflip was at lancaster speedway, lancaster Ny. Near Buffalo.
RIP
The phrase "gross negligence" comes to mind. Wow.
I can’t help but imagine how awful the person who gifted him that voucher felt after it happened 💔
RIP Stephen
Oh hell, It be terrible :(
I did the Petty Experience at KY in 2011. This is so sad.
I did this for my birthday last year at Phoenix. Thankfully I had someone else driving for me
How would they know if the was installed backwards if it was found off of the column ?
I'm kinda surprised this young man died, I've crashed my Modified at that speed into concrete walls with no Hans device and came out of it fairly well, sore neck for several weeks, actually I had my steering wheel come off at Thompson Internationl Speedway in Connecticut and I didn't actually crash surprisingly, it came off in the right place at the right time fortunately 😀
I've raced a bunch on short tracks. I dont think it would be possible to get the wheel on backwards. I did the Dale Jarrett experience at Talladega. The thing that stood out was how old the tires looked, they had cracks in the sidewalls. I still got in and went 165.
If the steering wheel became detached and considering how things must have been knocked around during the crashing, how could it be determined the wheel was put on backwards - if that is even possible - when the driver first took off?
@@johnmcmullen456
Maybe an in car video that one can purchase.
I use to wrap all their cars. My wrap shop was down the street from their race shop across the street from Auto Club Speedway. It was so much fun duplicating cup car schemes. I had a blast doing them. I’ve also driving the speedway a gazillion times in their cars. It’s so much fun. Do it if you have a chance. The cars are set up super tight so it’s hard to get them to break traction out back and spin. Buddy of mine worked there, I remember the first time I drove the track. I came in and he asked how it was. I said I wanted to go faster. So he turned up the rev limiter. Next session out I lapped everyone.😂 He even got my 8yo son a ride-a-long. I picked Seth up from school early and took him to the track. (He raced quarter midgets and baby sprint cars at the time) It was awesome. He had a smile a mile wide. I have the video somewhere of it on YT. Great memories.
Edit. Adding a funny story. JJ had just won another championship in Homestead, no clue which one, and was going to be at the speedway promoting the track a couple days later. Problem was Hendrick couldn’t get a car across the country in time. So they used a RWRE car. The issue there is they only had a couple Fords in the shop that were drivable, as the fleet of cars was somewhere else at some track. So they stuck a Chevy nose on the car in a record time. Then I wrapped the whole thing his Lowes livery. But they rear quarter windows were different between the Ford and Chevy. So when we wrapped it. We just trimmed out the back quarter windows to look like a Chevy. Jimmie came out, did his ride-a-long laps, all in Ford, masked as a Chevy. And from the pictures they took after with each participant, they deliberately stood in a way around the car that all you saw was a Lowe’s Chevy. 😂
Damn that car was wrecked HARD. Jeesus.
People know that it's dangerous and with racing cars but failing to keep up with general safety is UNACCEPTABLE.
Flat out wrong.
I sure would love to know what happened to the lawsuit any updates?
3:36 "These crashes are pretty tamed compared to NASCAR crashes"
*Proceeds to show a car doing a sick backflip*
I did a Rusty Wallace experience at 4:17 raceway in Punta Gorda FL. The In car communication was one way and when I heard them telling the driver in front of me to lift and stay left so I can pass, it took two laps for him to do so. As I tried to pass on the outside in turn two the backend sliped out, fishtailed and sent me almost straight into the outside wall. Luckily it's a small track and I wasn't hurt. I did have the insurance which saved me a financial headache but I always wondered how that car got loose so easily. Old tires? Dirty track? Too much throttle? All I know is I don't want to do that again.
The fact that the customer would have to pay anything at all for a wreck is ridiculous. That just tells me that these jackasses don’t carry enough insurance to cover their losses. I’ll bet anything that if they don’t have adequate insurance for property damage, they probably don’t carry adequate levels of liability either. What a shit-show.
This is somewhat typical for events like this. I've never seen an auto experience that didn't have enhanced insurance as an up sell or some sort of fee if you wreck the car. I'm sure it discourages risk taking behaviour at the least.
@@mattymatte6289I've done this Rusty Wallace experience at a short track, you are correct they offer you extra insurance in case of a wreck. When I parked at the location I heard a loud bang, it was a person who was doing the experience was coming off the track and slammed into the wall of the men's bathroom, made a giant hole where there should have been a toilet stall. Needless to say that freaked me out but I still didn't get the extra insurance despite hearing the guy who wrecked the car pleading his case to the employees saying the car caused it's as they were telling him he was liable for the the damage as he did not get the extra insurance. When it was my turn to turn laps I took it somewhat easier as a result. Honestly it is a miracle the guy driving the car nor a person in the bathroom got hurt.
If it wasn't set up to pay for your own damages, you would have folks being reckless and playing bumper cars so it kinda has to be that way. It's a business and you can't run it if your cars are being repaired after every run
Fair enough, I didn’t think about it’s power to discourage reckless behavior. I stand corrected.
@LPKelly380 just that tiny amout of people ruin everything, I feel like most folks would know how to act . Have a good night my friend
How do they know all this information on what happened, do they have a camera in the car, was he able to talk to spotter with radio, it was said in these comments that the steering wheel was to close to him maybe he took it off and turn it around thinking to gain some room ?
My heartfelt condolences to the family of the deceased....
ok i just have on issue with what you said the a piller cracked ive had a pillers crack on my car befor after a wreak and also with the seat they set the seat to what is comfortable for the driver so the seat being that far forward would have been of his own doing the bealts being exspired do not really matter
As a veteran of many high speed driving events, I've never failed to have the car inspected, the dates checked on safety equipment, typically there's a final check at pit out. Every organization I've driven with requires anyone who is not a licensed race driver to get an in car sign off when (and IF) the instructor is satisfied that the student driver is capable of handling the car. Most do 'follow the leader'Frankly, it sounds like track driving as an amusement park ride. And yes, I've crashed. Once. 35 mph into a fixed barrier at Pocono. It was not fun. I cannot imagine the violence of doing it at 100mph.
I'm not saying it's an amusement park ride, but I am thinking the cars should be held to amusement park standards. They need to be licensed and inspected by the county, by law you need to keep detailed records on repairs and reported problems. That or some licensed stewards who do normal tech inspections at race tracks. Without that, safety can be sacrificed for profit, like keeping expired safety equipment, or holding off repairs. Cars should be able to be red-tagged until a proper reinspection after a crash.
For people who run stock cars, they have to handle all that for tech, and they have a couple of days to repair it. There are enough checks with templates and cambers which would indicate frame damage, and you'd address a cracked weld if you were in the car. Sounds like good job opportunities for wrenchheads.
I am no expert here, but if its a quick release wheel arent you supposed to give it a tug to make sure the ball bearings are engaged in the groove so it dont fall off?
I've seen the steering wheel come off in different very experienced friends' hands. It happens.
I saw the accident, I was in the pit box when the car went to turn but went straight into the wall, I saw the smoke from the brakes but it was too late for him, There were some doctors next to the car and when the car returned to the garage, I was able to notice the missing steering wheel
I would love to try it. 😊
my advice is if you want to race or be in a race car spend the money and get your own car and race at a local track. I raced for six years and learned a lot in the six years
Biggest difference here is Stephen got this experience voucher as a birthday gift. He didn’t intend on doing this on his own terms
As someone that also raced/races for many years and spent many thousands of dollars racing. I don't agree with your statement at all. If someone wants to actually for sure race and be a race car driver sure. This Driving experience is usually not for them types of people. Hence 90% of people partaking has 0 racing experience.
This is for people who went to go spend a couple laps in a race car once or twice and not actually be race car drivers. So you're saying these people should instead of paying $300-$1000 on an experience. Should go buy a race car and all the safety gear (Which they have no clue what to buy.) Spending many thousands of dollars to possibly not even like racing. Plus there's a extremely higher chance of death in a normal race compared to these driving experiences. That's not even going into the fact that they'd also be putting everyone else on track in danger, due to their lack of experience.
racing is not a game it is life or death in some cases and if your going to try driving you need experience @@Corky3D
Telling people to get a shitbox and go to a shit hole race track with shitty meth heads isnt a good introduction to racing lol
To be fair your more likely to be injured or killed driving on the highway than at one of these events. And I have had friends who drove at my local dirt track and the same thing happened to them with the steering wheel. Also happened to Dale Jr once
Wow! I’m speechless
Thanks, didn't know about this. That's bad all the way around.
1:30 weird seeing my hometown track that i live 15 minutes away from here
This is sad, but, im going to do this one day!
3:33 what series is that!?! 😮
Just hearing bout this now? RIP kid
Bro Kentucky sucks bc of the traffic jams that happen on the roads around it trying to get in and out of the speedway
Nobody cares 😂
If his wheel came off how is that not his fault for not properly installing it and locking it. Wouldn't that be one of their #1 talking points, on how to make sure the wheel is locked
Do they make you sign a disclaimer? Or do they have 20 pages of small print?😮
For an inexperienced (ie: first time driver) the complete setup required for ovals goes against everything that driving a ‘normal’ car teaches you on a daily basis.
The steering wheel only comes off if you push the button...I have never seen a racing wheel that could be installed upside down...THATS IMPOSSIBLE.